Murasaki Iro no Sora Amethyst coloured Sky
by Aria DC al Fine
Summary: AU. Set in Showa era. Azuma Kazuma, a rice farmer in Izu, received a birthday present from his friends. He just didn’t expect to fall in love with the present. Soft Yaoi AzumaxKanmuri
1. Welcome to Adulthood

Title: Murasaki Iro no Sora (Amethyst-coloured Sky)

Authoress: Aria DC al Fine

Genre: Romance/Angst

Rating: M

Synopsis: AU. Set in Showa era. Azuma Kazuma, a rice farmer in Izu, received a birthday present from his friends. He just didn't expect to fall in love with the present. Soft Yaoi AzumaxKanmuri

Disclaimer: Not mine, but Hashiguchi Takashi-sensei's. Sadly.

Warning: borderline lime to lemon. I don't upload the complete version here for fear for going overboard. Those who want to read the smutty scene must message me to get it.

A/N: Since it's AU, it goes without saying that OOCness abounds.

Chapter 1: Welcome to Adulthood

"O TANJOUBI OMEDETOU (HAPPY BIRTHDAY)!" everyone screamed, as Azuma Kazuma, a slender, tanned, young rice farmer in Izu had just returned to his humble abode, the small estate that he shared with his extended family, from working in the fields all day long.

"Huh?" bewildered, Azuma looked around at the familiar faces of his friends and relatives, the feast lay on the table, the huge bottle of sake. He raised a calloused, dark, slightly muscled hand over his head, removed his straw hat and wiped the sweat off his brows. "Sou ja! Kyou wa ore no tanjoubi ja! Wasureta ja! (My, I forgot that today is my birthday!)"

"Ahou (Idiot)!" Kawachi Kyousuke, a fellow rice farmer who had migrated from Kansai a few years ago, remarked, and messed his shoulder-length brown hair. "How can you forget your own birthday? Not to mention your fifteen one!" his voice became lower towards the end.

"Yes, yes, how can you?" Katsuo, a pig-like man who appeared much younger than he really was, a worker at the neighboring pig farm, assented, drool leaking from his lips. "Your coming-of-age (A/N: In the past, a boy, especially if raised as a samurai, was considered an adult at fifteen)!" he said with gusto.

A fist was sent flying Katsuo's way. "Stop it, pervert! You're contaminating my dear little brother's mind!" Inaho hissed, a vein pulsing on the young woman's temple. "Kazuma, don't listen to Katsuo and Kawachi!"

"Kazuma," the boy's father, a good-natured middle-aged man with a large smile, led the newly turned adult to the dining table, "Kawachi, Katsuo, Inaho, Oji-san, minna," he addressed everyone in the room, "Don't let the food grow cold! Tuck in!"

Katsuo, Kawachi, and the Azuma family partied as the sky turned from blue to a symphony or gold, amethyst and vermilion, before the colours were swiped away to black, dotted with sparkling diamonds. The men gobbled down the pork cutlets Katsuo cooked. Kazuma had his first taste of sake, but Inaho prevented him from drinking enough to be tipsy. They took a trip to the temple to pray to the Inari-Kami (The Fox Gods) and played games after they returned home. It was well into the night before the party was unofficially over, with everyone slumped on the tatami in the living room, dozing off from exhaustion.

"Psst, Kazuma," Kawachi shook the brunette's shoulder, "Kazuma!"

"That soft method won't work," Katsuo snorted. He kicked the young man on the leg. "KAZUMA!" he whispered.

"W-what?" Azuma jumped, "Is there fire? Flood? Thunder?" he looked over the window in panic.

"Be quiet! We don't want to wake anyone! Especially Inaho…" Kawachi covered Azuma's mouth with his hand, "There's nothing of the sort."

"Jeez, then why do you wake me up?" Azuma complained as he rubbed his eyes, "I'm not sure I can go back to sleep again…"

"That's the idea, ahou (idiot)," Kawachi sighed, and Katsuo nodded. "We want to give you a birthday present." The two peered at each other at the corners of their eyes before grabbing the unsuspecting Azuma around the wrists.

"Huh?" the poor, confused victim was dragged out of his house, along the road to downtown. As Azuma followed his friends, he saw girls, lots of them, in skimpy kimono, exposing their torsos and their legs, their faces painted like lotuses, calling in high-pitched voices. "Soko no otoko, kite joudai (the men over there, please come over)!"

The hair at the back of Azuma's neck stood. "K-kawachi! Katsuo! Are we in the Red Light District?" the youngest of the three asked, a frown on his face.

"Do you have eyes? Atarimae yarou (Of course)!" Kawachi turned to the birthday boy and replied.

"D-don't you say you're going to get me a present?" Azuma was on his wits' end.

"Omae wa hontou ni ahou (you're really an idiot)," Katsuo sighed, "Your present is here."

"W-what?" Azuma began to struggle.

Kawachi and Katsuo gave him a perverted grin. "Be patient, Kazuma. Soon, you'll have your first fuck."

"I-I don't-" He struggled even harder. Couldn't wait to get to the brothel he frequented, Kawachi hoisted Azuma over his shoulder and carried him all the way. "NOOO!"

"Ne, kawaii (he's really cute)!"

"Hontou (For real)! Toshi ikutsu (how old are you)?"

"Tele tele shicau yo (Don't be shy)!"

Currently, Azuma was sitting uncomfortably on his calves in one of the rooms of Maboroshi-ya, surrounded by 4 extravagantly dressed prostitutes, their obis tied to large ribbons below their ample, half exposed jingling breasts, instead of at their backs like normal, respectable women. As they were poking and touching him all over the places, patting his hair, cold sweat was dripping down Azuma's temple, drenching his cheap white oblong shirt. His form was trembling. 'Get away from me,' he closed his eyes and willed in his head as those women closed in on him.

"I envy Kazuma," Kawachi sighed. Katsuo nodded fervently. "Must be nice to be surrounded by sexy women like that," he purposely raised his voice.

"Aah, Katsuo-sama, you're too kind," one of the 4 replied, tired by Azuma's response to her advances, she tried her luck on him. The perverted man plunged his face straight to her bosom. "Ah…I'm in heaven."

A green-eyed girl chuckled from the doorway. Kawachi turned to the source of the familiar sound. "Tsukino!" he greeted her.

"Kawachi-san, konnichiwa. Mata kuru yo ne (you come here again)," the girl bowed and smiled. Like the other 4, her obi was tied at the front, her chignon was decorated with intricate combs and pins with dangling pearls, and her face was painted, but instead of looking repulsive, she looked lovely and sweet.

"Of course! I'm a regular!" Kawachi grinned back, weak at the knees, "Tokoro de (by the way), that boy is Azuma Kazuma," he used his thumb to point at the brown-haired boy, who seemed to be trembling harder than before.

"The one that just turns fifteen today?" Tsukino recalled, and Kawachi nodded. "The boy is quite awkward around women, so please pick a good, experienced girl for him."

"Wakarimasu (I understand)," the green-eyed teenager turned to one of the prostitutes near Azuma. "Minako-chan, yasashi ni shite kudasai (please be gentle with him)."

"Hai!" The girl responded enthusiastically, and pulled her customer out of the holding room. "K-Kawachi! Katsuo!" Azuma cried, and stretched his hand out to them.

"It's okay to be nervous. You'll enjoy it soon!" Kawachi waved him off, and let Minako lug the brunet out of the room, his scream echoing down the corridor.

"Now that that business is over!" Katsuo stood up, the prostitute's hand in his, "I'll be off to paradise too, Kawachi!" he charged at the door, the girl laughing naughtily, "You're so eager, aren't you?"

"Sa te to (Well, then)," Tsukino gestured at the remaining 2 prostitutes, "Which girl will you pick? Or do you wish to pick another?"

'Yes, you,' Kawashi mouthed silently, but shook his head and picked up an empty cup from the tray provided. "I'll stay here for a while and make sure Kazuma's okay."

"Kawachi-san wa yasashi ne (Kawachi is kind)," Tsukino praised him and poured him some sake, smiling as the Kansai boy blushed.

They spent around five minutes chatting, before Azuma barged into the room, the string around his pants loose. "Kawachi!" he called out tearfully, "I-I," he stuttered.

"Shush," Kawachi put his hand on the younger male's head, "Calm down. What's wrong?"

Minako entered the room, looking pissed. "Don't look at me like that," she said quickly when Kawachi shot her a glare, "It's not my fault. I didn't do anything! I haven't even taken off my clothes. The guy's afraid of women."

Kawachi looked down at the boy, who was sobbing to his hands. "Azuma, is that true?"

The caramel-eyed youth looked up, and nodded. "Oka-san died when I was a baby…T-the only woman I've ever known is…Onee-chan, and…"

Well, then, everything was explained. "You don't have to say it. I know. Inaho-san is…" Kawachi couldn't even say anything bad about her. Her presence lingered.

"Argh!" Kawachi grunted in frustration, "You need to overcome it! Your future depends on it!"

"B-but…Kawachi…" fresh tears began flow down Azuma's cheeks.

"You have to! Otherwise we can't get you your present!"

"B-but!"

"Urusai (You're so noisy)!" A voluptuous black-haired woman in a gaudy red kimono shrieked from the doorway, her heavily painted eyes shooting off a murderous aura, "You're disturbing other patrons!"

Tsukino knocked her head to the floor. "Moshiwakegozai masu (I deeply apologise), Yukino-nee-sama!"

"Hmph!" The young woman sneered at her half sister, "You're such a burden! What's the problem, huh?"

Kawachi noticed that this woman's obi was tied behind her back. Which meant…this woman must be Azusagawa Yukino, the owner of the brothel. He bowed before giving his answer. "Yukino-sama, my friend turns fifteen today, and I'd like to treat him his first sexual encounter, but he is afraid of the opposite sex."

Yukino's eye twitched. "You make such a big fuss over this small matter?" she growled, "This brothel also caters for the likes of you," she turned to Tsukino, "Bitch, get Murasaki!"

There was a small, sharp intake of breath before Tsukino gave a reply. "Wakarimashita." She bowed again and left the room, while Yukino gave Kawachi one last look. "Gokiburi-domo (Cockroaches)," she muttered under her breath, and walked out.

"It's okay. Stop crying," Kawachi handed his friend a handkerchief, and as Azuma was wiping his tears (and blowing his nose), Kawachi turned to the 3 prostitutes in the room. "Who's this Murasaki? I have been a regular for more than a year and I've never heard of her."

2 prostitutes giggled, while Minako sneered. "That's because Murasaki isn't a girl. Murasaki is a boy."

"A boy?" Kawachi was shocked, "but Azuma isn't...isn't…"

"Omataseshimashita (I'm sorry to keep you waiting)." The paper door was slid open, and a petite, slender figure in a body hugging violet female kimono entered. The kimono was tied low to expose a delicate bone structure and fair skin. The person's lips were luscious, but the most striking features were a pair of large, amethyst-coloured eyes, framed by long lashes which cast shadow on fine cheekbones, and shoulder-length, fluffy sakura-coloured hair which teased the nape of a graceful neck. "Murasaki to yu imasu (I am Murasaki)," the figure bowed.

"Nan ya de?" Kawachi gaped. The prostitute was indeed a boy, a boy so young he must be around Azuma's age; the lack of curves, and the slightly low voice gave away his gender. But he was so…pretty. Kawachi rubbed his eyes, unsure whether this…bishounen was real or not.

Azuma himself was struck speechless. Never in his life had he seen such a gorgeous no, exquisite, otherworldly boy, so beautiful he seemed ethereal.

"Oh, the abnormality has arrived," Minako mocked, and gave a high pitched laughter.

Murasaki's left eye twitched a small fraction of an inch.

Kawachi turned to Minako. He was really beginning to hate her. "You-!" he started, but Murasaki raised his hand. "Makasete kuadasai (please leave this to me)," he whispered softly, before the boy smiled at Minako. "Anata no okakede desu (Thanks to you)."

Minako's vein popped. "Are you implying that I made this boy fear women?" she spat.

Murasaki pretended to look sympathetic. "Ara, sore wa hontou desuka (so it's true)?"

"T-teme (You bastard)!" Minako raised her hand and was about to slap him on the face, but Murasaki caught the prostitute's hand midair. The look on his face was malevolent. "Boku wa otoko to yu koto wasurete mitai desu, Minako-san (You seem to have forgotten that I am a male)," he whispered in a low, malice-laced tone.

Minako fumed and left the room again in a flurry of kimono. When Murasaki turned to Azuma, he was all smiles again. "Anata wa boku no kyaku desu ne (You must be my customer)."

"Y-yes," Azuma replied and blushed, nervous that the pink-haired boy was talking to him.

Murasaki tilted his head. "Then, shall we proceed?" he offered Azuma a pale hand.

The rice farmer took it, and was amazed at the silky feel of the other young boy's hand. "Follow my lead," Murasaki said to the tanned teenager.

The walk down the corridor seemed like an eternity. Murasaki's violet eyes were focused right ahead, while Azuma's own caramel ones kept on darting to the side, stealing glances at the pretty prostitute. When he walked, Murasaki looked like he floated, so light were his steps, his movements elegant as though he was dancing. Azuma was embarrassed of his own loud steps, his self-conscious movements.

"We've reached the room," Murasaki announced, snapping Azuma off his musings. His blush deepened when Murasaki smiled at him before opening the door.

Inside was a standard 6-tatami room, with a large futon laid at the centre. It was just like the one he had been with Minako. But unlike with her, all the fear had left his mind completely.

"Sa te to (Well, then)," Murasaki turned to him after both of them had been seated on the futon, "How should I serve you?"

Azuma looked down at his lap. "I-I d-don't know…"

"I forgot! It's your first, isn't it?" Murasaki shifted closer to the other boy and bent low to meet Azuma's eyes. "Then, please open your legs," he whispered huskily as he placed a hand on Azuma's leg, pushing it outwards.

"B-but," Azuma refused to be budged.

Murasaki smiled at him reassuringly. "Simpai shinai de (don't worry). Yasashi shite kureru kara (I'll be gentle)."

The bishounen eased Azuma to spread his legs apart to make space for him. When Murasaki was safely tucked between Azuma's hakama-clad legs, he used his teeth to untie the knot of the string around Azuma's waist, one pale hand creeping under the white oblong shirt.

Azuma shuddered. Murasaki's pale hand was unexpectedly warm against the rough skin of his abs. "W-what are you doing?"

"What you paid me for," Murasaki replied calmly, and used his other hand to pull down Azuma's pants,

CENSORED

As Azuma lied on his back, recovering, Murasaki sat by his side and wiped the sweat below the curtain of brown fringe. "Why?" he inquired quietly.

"Huh?" Azuma stared up at the other boy with an 'isn't that obvious?' expression on his young, gullible face. "I don't want to come in your mouth. Come doesn't taste nice, right?" he answered bluntly.

Something shifted in Murasaki. He had encountered many customers, each with their own weird demands, but this was the first time someone had given him such a consideration. Treated him as an equal instead of someone he could treat however he wanted. 'Must be because it's his first,' he thought bitterly, 'it's going to change soon.'

"Ack!" Azuma's face seemed to have turned impossibly redder. Murasaki followed Azuma's previous line of sight and chuckled lightly when he discovered that the rice farmer was still hard.

"G-gomen," Azuma squeaked; he looked positively mortified. Murasaki only gave him a smile. "It's okay. It's within the scope of payment. Anyways, I don't think you can unleash years of pent up sexual tension with one blowjob." He chuckled harder when Azuma appeared even more mortified.

"Well, then," Murasaki stood up and gave his obi a tug. The piece of clothe came apart easily, and as soon as the belt was undone, the silky violet kimono slid off his shoulders and pooled around his feet, leaving the pretty boy with nothing but his birthday suit.

Azuma was mesmerized by sight. Murasaki was a bit on the thin side, Azuma could see the outline of some of his lower ribs, but they were in an era where everyone but the aristocrats and high government officials was slightly on the thin side, so it wasn't a flaw. Moonlight streamed into the cubicle room through the window, illuminating his unblemished alabaster's skin, casting shadows on dusky nipples, shapely legs and jutting hipbones.

That instant, Azuma understood what desire felt like, an itch under his skin, clawing his heart and making his breath stop. He absolutely must have this man or he'd die.

Murasaki turned to present his backside to Azuma and bent down to retrieve a small bottle of scented oil from the sleeve of his kimono, making Azuma completely mad for a few seconds.

Murasaki smirked infuriatingly as he uncapped the bottle, poured some oil to his hands, before straddling Azuma's hips, and coated Azuma's hard length with oil. Azuma braced himself for the cold, but it never came. Murasaki's hands were, like his own, continuously warm.

CENSORED

Murasaki's violet eyes shot open. His hands flew to Azuma's slightly bulging biceps. "What are you doing?" he gasped.

"I want you to enjoy it too," Azuma replied honestly, plain and simple.

'Naze (why)?'

CENSORED

Azuma stilled, afraid, beads of sweat dripping from his chin to Murasaki's stomach. "Did I hurt you?"

"No!" Murasaki shook his head feverishly.

'Naze boku ni yasashii ni shite kureru (why are you so kind to me)?'

"Ne," Azuma panted as the pace of his thrusts picked up. "What's your name?" he asked as he was going to come a second time.

"Murasaki," the pink-haired boy breathed, his pale skin almost turned pink completely accentuating the pink of his hair.

"Not that," the caramel-eyed boy grunted, determined to know his lover's name before he came, "That's the name you're known as in this brothel. I want your real name." To prove his resolve, he slowed down, even if it nearly killed him.

The violet-eyed one groaned, his hand reaching to touch himself, but Azuma caught it on the wrist and held it over his pink head.

Surprised, the prostitute looked up at the farmer's earnest face. The two stared into each other's eyes for a moment, before a soft, a genuine smile graced the uke's face. "It's Kanmuri," his quiet voice sounded loud in the silence, "Kanmuri Shigeru."

"Shigeru…" Azuma tried the name on his lips. He liked the pliable sound that lingered after the sibilance and the strength of the 'g' and 'r'. "Shigeru," he chanted. He couldn't contain it anymore. His lips sought those of his lover; they met in a surprisingly gentle kiss.

Kanmuri jerked violently. The kiss snapped him to pieces, shattering in a second then put him together again. He had never been kissed that tenderly by a male. Tears pooled in his eyes before he came with a force that took away his breath, clenching his butt and sending his lover over the edge as well. "Shigeru!" Azuma breathed, worshipping his name, before he collapsed on top of the other boy.

The two laid on the futon, sated. Every muscle in Kanmuri's body ached, while Azuma felt as though he was a lead. He stayed inside the other boy, comfortably joined together in silence for minutes, but eventually, all good things must come to an end. Kanmuri pulled away from the first customer who had given him an unconditional pleasure and picked up his kimono. "I have to serve the next customer," he said his farewell without looking at Azuma, his head bent low, his eyes shadowed by his fringe.

"No!" With must effort, Azuma rose up and grabbed Kanmuri around the wrist. "Stay with me."

Kanmuri smiled, and pried Azuma's dark hand off his own. "It'll cost you much, much more. You must think of Kawachi-san, who is paying for you." He concentrated on retying his obi as Azuma looked down in disappointment.

"Then," undeterred, Azuma looked up again, the lines on his face firm, "I can come here again tomorrow, right?"

"That, Azuma-san, is up to you," finished with his relatively less elaborate set up (female prostitutes have to do their hair), Kanmuri answered from the doorway. "I am glad to have met you, Azuma-san." The light from the corridor cast shadows on half of his pretty face as he smiled.

"I'll see you again, Shigeru!" Azuma promised, "Zettai ni (For sure)!"

It was a meeting that would change their fates, intertwining them together, a stone falling to the river. The ripples would be seen. Soon.

TBC

A/N: Murasaki means violet. Azuma probably figured it was not Kanmuri's real name due to the lack of surname, and because no one named their child with colours (Aoi - blue and Midori - green seem to be exceptions). I though of naming Kanmuri Momo (pink), but that sounds weird. Yasashii can mean gentle, or kind.

EDIT: I made a gross error. Murasaki IS a person's name. A female's name, to be precise. She was the author of the famous literary treasure The Tale of Genji, Murasaki Shikibu. She named her heroine after her, a beautiful Imperial Consort in Heian Period. It's superlong (hearsay 1000 pages plus plus), and has no definite ending since Shikibu-sensei probably died before finishing her novel. But it's probably a gem, so if you like this kind of stuff, you should read it.

All the same, Azuma probably figured it wasn't Kanmuri's real name, cus why on earth a guy would have a girl's name?

A/N2: You're missing a lot, if you ask me. Even the uncensored parts have to be cut down. But if you're underage, then I have nothing to say.


	2. Anata to Onaji Jyanai

WARNING: This chapter is WAY more graphic than chapter 1, cus the sex scene is so short if I censored 1-2 sentences I don't think there's a point. I you are underaged, or can't stand BL, don't read that part!

**Chapter 2: Anata to onaji jyanai (I'm different from you)**

"Konbanwa (good evening)," Kanmuri half-sighed as he opened the sliding door. It was his third customer that night – he was exhausted, sore, and edgy. "How should I serve-?"

"Shigeru!" He was pulled into the room by an overly energetic tanned brunet, "Don't linger around; get to the windowsill now!"

"Wha-?" He exclaimed in shock before a flower burst in the stark darkness of the night sky right in front his amethyst eyes. Kanmuri appreciated the beauty of the vermilion and viridian colours, laced together before disappearing in a blink of an eye, replaced by golden sparks racing to the sky like shooting stars and blossoming to a myriad of flowers. "Hanabi desu…(It's fireworks)," he breathed in awe.

"Well, it's the last day of the Summer Festival," Azuma grinned from his position next to the pink-haired boy, "I chose this room because I figured this is the best view of the fireworks we can get from this brothel."

Looking at the fireworks reminded him of the enjoyments one could have in life, and soothed his aches. Kanmuri felt somewhat more relaxed. "Summer is ending," he commented leisurely.

"Kirei ja ne…(It's so pretty)" Kanmuri heard the farmer saying after nodding at his previous comment. The prostitute turned to him and smiled. "Hanabi ga (the fireworks)?"

Azuma's head rose from his arms, his eyes on Kanmuri the whole time. The fireworks coloured parts of Kanmuri's face, rainbows flashing on pale skin, reflected on Azuma's large caramel eyes. "Shigeru ga (Shigeru is)." (A/N: the one who is pretty, that is. Spoken Japanese is like that. Sometime one speaks just verbs, and the listener is supposed to know the subjects)

Roses blossomed on the white canvases that were Kanmuri's cheeks. If it weren't Azuma's compliment, Kanmuri would have replied it with, "Really? Thank you!" in a cheeky way middle-aged perverts seemed to like, but since it was the honest-to-a-fault Azuma, Kanmuri shook his head. "I can't possibly compare to the hanabi."

"Who says so?" Azuma dismissed the reply. "Anyways," he turned and gestured at a large green bundle lying on the futon. Kanmuri didn't know how he could have overlooked it, given the size. "I got you some things from the Festival."

'_Stop'_

"You don't have to," Kanmuri walked to the futon and sat on his calves next to the bag. "May I open it?"

"Atarimae ja (Of course)!" Azuma hopped to the spot next to the other boy and urged him to do so.

Kanmuri gasped in wonderment at the sight of many, many foods and toys inside. "A-azuma-san," he was rendered speechless.

"Since you can't go to the Festival, I make sure to get everything for you," Azuma grinned again. Kanmuri inhaled sharply. The boy was pure. He held nothing back, and never had any hidden objectives in his actions.

'_Stop'_

"You really don't have to…" Kanmuri picked up a marble from the bundle and inspected it under his nose. There was a four-leaved clover preserved within the pink-tinted spherical glass. "I'm sorry for bothering you…"

"What are you talking about? I promised to bring you lots of stuff from the Festival, didn't I? Now, let's tuck in!" Azuma rummaged through the trinkets and pulled out a round, red apple covered completely with sugar. "Try this! It's my favourite!"

"You should eat it," Kanmuri pushed the apple back to Azuma, despite the hunger pangs he'd felt for at least 2 hour.

"I'm full! I've eaten too many apples already!" the brunet insisted, "Just eat it!"

As if agreeing with the other boy, Kanmuri's stomach decided to growl at that instant. Face red as the representation of the original sin, Kanmuri took the handle of the apple from Azuma's warm hands. "Then, itadakimasu."

Kanmuri didn't intend to finish it, really. But it was so delicious. "Umai," he exclaimed in joy, "Aah, kono amashisha…(this sweetness) Kono umai mono…hajimete tabemashita (It's the first time I eat this delicacy)." He'd felt as though his mouth had an orgasm when the sugar melted on his tongue.

"Huh?" Azuma raised an eyebrow, "You've never been to a festival?"

"Ikimashita. Tashika…juu nen mae nan desu kedo (I had…may be ten years ago)," Kanmuri replied as he savoured the syrupiness on his taste buds, before his eyes had a faraway look in them. "Uchi wa bimbo dakara…(My family was poor)."

Azuma cried anime style, phlegm dripping from his nose. "Sou ja (So it's like that)," he sobbed in sympathy, "You should have told me earlier! Then-"

"Mae no hanashi deshita (It was a long time ago)!" Kanmuri said quickly, "I have enough food to eat now!" 'Relatively,' he added fervidly, his hatred for Yukino running deep.

"Naru hodo (I see)," the switch to a smile was very fast. "Shigeru wa amai mono suki ja ne (So Shigeru likes sweets)?" Azuma noted. "Well…" he pulled out a large, fluffy, pink-coloured cloud-on-a-stick and removed the plastic covering, "You should try this too."

Kanmuri eyed the food curiously. That was the first time he'd seen something like that. "Hen na tabe mono desu yo ne (What a peculiar food)."

"It's a new thing. The seller calls it cotton-candy," Azuma remarked, "When I saw it, I thought to myself, I absolutely must get it," he handed the stick to Kanmuri and smiled, "Coz it looks like your hair!"

Kanmuri pulled a lock of his hair closer to his eyes. "Hontou desu ne (It's true)," he stated, "Even the colour is similar." Truthfully, Kanmuri was surprised Azuma remembered his appearance to that extent. The paler boy looked back up at the farmer. "Won't you try this too?"

"It's okay. Anyway, I'm full," he crossed his arms behind his head and plopped to the futon.

'_Why are you so kind to me?'_

"Then…" Kanmuri took a large bite of the cotton candy and lowered his lips to Azuma when the other boy least expected it. Azuma recovered from his surprise quickly, though. Tongues battled in a fiery dance, familiarizing the contours of each other's mouths, legs tangling together intimately, heated flesh rubbing against the fabric of their clothes…

* * *

It was a fine, autumn morning. Red maple leaves fell off branches of trees, swaying by the wind before covering the paved ground. Birds were chirping. The sun shone warmly in the clear sky…

"Murasaki! Wake up, you trash!" Yukino's shrill voice destroyed the ambience. "Don't laze around! Sweep the front yard!"

"Hai, Yukino-sama!" Kanmuri replied his master. He sighed and left the windowsill halfheartedly. 'The trash is you,' he muttered viciously under his breath.

A girl chuckled lightly from the futon at the centre of the room. "Genki mitai da ne, Shigeru-kun (You look cheerful today)." The dark-eyed girl, with elbow-length black hair, and an unhealthy pale countenance, remarked as she folded Kanmuri's futon.

"Harumi!" the pink-haired boy jumped, "What are you doing? You should be resting!"

"I felt better when I woke up this morning," Harumi replied.

"But that's not a reason to get out of bed!" Kanmuri snapped at the small-voiced female as he pulled the futon from her.

The sick girl was quiet, her head bent low. The pink-haired boy was laden with guilt. "I'm sorry," he touched her on the back of her hand, "But you really mustn't get out of bed. If you don't follow what the sensei told you, you won't recover."

Harumi paused for a while, before her face brightened, her lips curling up to a smile. "You're right. I'm sorry, Shigeru-kun."

Kanmuri was shown a flash of how beautiful this young woman, this flower of the Maboroshi-ya brothel, used to be, a Japanese doll with the composure of Snow White, with large long lashed eyes, button nose and plump cherry lips. Reminiscing those days only saddened him.

"Shigeru-kun," Harumi breathed from beneath the blanket Kanmuri had tucked her into, "You make sure that you stay away from the black dragon, right?"

"Of course," Kanmuri nodded. Harumi reminded him everyday; there was no way he could forget.

"And…" Harumi vacillated, "have you heard anything from Masanobu-kun?"

Kanmuri shifted his gaze. He couldn't meet his childhood friend's eyes. "Yukino-sama didn't…"

"Never mind!" Harumi interrupted him, a large smile patched on her face. But it was patched wrong, the lines crooked. They both knew it, but acknowledging it was too painful. "By the way," Harumi said in a singsong tone in an attempt to overturn the mood, "you absolutely have to tell me what have made you so cheerful these past few weeks! You couldn't seem to get that small smile off your face!"

Kanmuri blushed. "There's nothing!"

"Are you sure?" Harumi smirked.

"MURASAKI!" Again, Yukino's voice destroyed the tranquil. "COMING!" Kanmuri stood up. "There's no helping that woman," he mock-complained at Harumi before changing out of his pajama to a working male two-piece kimono. "Iterasai (I'll be going), Harumi."

"Itekimasu," the girl replied, and waved at him. "May the gods protect you today, Shigeru-kun."

* * *

"Nan ya de?" Kawachi exclaimed, "You've been going to Maboroshi-ya frequently since your birthday?"

Azuma's caramel eyes met Kawachi's head on and nodded firmly.

"Aaah, the boy had his first taste of sex and can't have enough," Katsuo remarked, his eyes had perverted gleams in them, drool leaking out from the ends of his mouth.

The three were having a simple lunch (onigiris and tea) by the hut in the middle of the rice fields, watching the straw-man swinging pendulously in the wind, and throwing stones at the crows and squirrels. Katsuo joined them despite not being a farmer. Kawachi was retelling Katsuo about the incident with Minako and the two older men were still trying to get Azuma to share his experience about how he lost his virginity (with a guy, nevertheless). Strangely, Azuma yielded that day.

"Like I know the difference; I've never had sex with a girl," Azuma answered one of Katsuo's questions and looked at the pig-like guy as though he was the dumbest person on earth. In some ways, Azuma wasn't mistaken.

"But you always top, don't you?" Kawachi asked curiously.

"Top?" Azuma repeated, his head tilted, "What's top?"

"Aargh, you know," Kawachi jabbed a finger into a make-shift hole he formed with his thumb and point finger, his face turning red.

"Ooh, you mean penetrate?" Azuma responded smilingly, "Yes, I do."

Kawachi sighed. Talking to this thick-headed guy could take such a toll on him, sometimes.

"Then it shouldn't be much of a difference to having sex to a girl," Katsuo insisted. "Especially since Kawachi said the boy was pretty."

"Like you wouldn't believe!" Kawachi agreed. "So all in all, it was a good experience?"

"Yes! But…" Azuma frowned, "I recall that there was a strange smell lingering in the air…it wasn't so strong, but I don't like it…"

"Ah, that must be the black dragon," Katsuo answered dismissively. "You might not like it now, but-"

"Don't ever touch the black dragon!" Kawachi interjected, the lines on his face firm, "That stuff is poison, you hear me? Promise me you won't get anywhere near it!"

"I promise," Azuma replied, "But Kawachi, what is the black dragon?"

"It's the seed of evil," Kawachi clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white, "A whiff is enough to make you soar to the sky, but afterwards, without it, your life will be completely miserable. You'll do anything to obtain it. It'll ruin your life," the kansai guy looked down, "just like it had ruined my father's."

The three men were quiet for the longest of time as Kawachi mourned, before the pervert Katsuo tried to lift up the mood again. "Hey, Azuma, do you recall the memories when you wank?" he nudged his young friend.

Kawachi's hair rose like a cat bristling. "Katsuo, you went too far-!"

"What's wanking?" Azuma asked innocently, and Kawachi fell. 'So much for the concern…'

Katsuo sighed. When it came to sexual stuff, Azuma was the dumb one. "Wanking means, you know, touching yourself."

"Touching myself?" Azuma poked his own cheek with his point finger, "like this?"

Katsuo sweat dropped. "No, ahou (idiot)! It means touching your penis and thinking of beautiful girls! Or guys, in your case…" he blurted bluntly, his patience running thin.

"Why do I have to wank?" Azuma asked yet another stupid question.

"Coz you aren't getting any, that's why!" Katsuo screamed at him, his saliva spattered on Azuma's face.

And in that conversation, Azuma dropped the bomb.

"Do you know how expensive the fare is?" Kawachi tried to convince Azuma to stop going, "We're not rich! It's not something you can do even once a month! Scratch frequently!"

"Don't be too harsh on the boy, Kawachi," Katsuo stated blithely, "Let the boy fuck it out of his system. Don't be such a worry-wart. It's just sex."

"Honmani are dake nara ii ya kedo (It's fine if that's the only case)," Kawachi was reminded of Tsukino, whom he had a crush on. The Kansai guy placed his hands on Azuma's shoulders. "Fine, you can go there again today, and fuck anyway you want. But remember this. Don't ever, ever fall in love with a prostitute!"

"Hai!" Not knowing what love felt like, Azuma made a second promise with Kawachi. This promise, he couldn't keep.

* * *

"Thank you for coming!" Kanmuri bowed as his regular left Maboroshi-ya's entrance. The man was a middle-aged pervert, absolutely relentless and disgusting in bed. The man's favourite was a role-play, a kinky SM. Kanmuri was glad his visit was a quick one. He sighed in relief as he reentered the brothel.

"Gokuro-sama (Thank you for the hard work)," Tsukino smiled at him at the corridor, "I'm not sure you'll find it a compliment or an offence, but I find that the get-up looks good on you."

This night, Kanmuri was dressed in a sakura-patterned kimono, his hair clipped up with a crimson, intricate dragonfly-shaped pin. The pin was Harumi's, and Kanmuri's good luck charm. "Coming from Tsukino-san, I'll take it as a compliment," The pink-haired boy smiled back. Out of most of the prostitutes in the brothel, he liked Tsukino best; she had a good head and a steel determination to survive. She could get to where she was now, the chief in the brothel, left untouched by most females prostitutes (who could be very ferocious; Kanmuri could give a first hand account), and relatively ignored by Yukino-sama, through sheer hard work. Tsukino never participated in petty catfights or mocked others.

She also stayed clear from the black dragon.

"Tokoro de (by the way), Kanmuri-kun," Tsukino preferred to call the boy by his real name, "Ano otoko no ko…tashika ni…kare no namae wa Azuma Kazuma desu yo ne (the boy…his name was Azuma Kazuma, if I'm not mistaken). Mata kite kureru desu (He comes again today)." A smile graced the green-eyed teenager's face, "I've already sent him to room 104. He's waiting for you." As she passed him the key, she whispered to his ear, "He isn't very well off, isn't he? I'm glad that we get a regular, but you must think of his own good."

The two prostitutes looked at each other seriously for a moment. "Arigatou," he finally nodded to her before proceeding to the room. "Konbanwa, Azuma-san," Kanmuri bowed after he slid the door open.

Azuma was sitting by the window, staring at the stars. The breeze was tousling his shoulder-length brown hair about, scent of wild grasses and fields wafting towards Kanmuri. "Natsukashii kaori (what a nostalgic scent)," he whispered softly and closed his eyes.

"What nostalgic scent?" Azuma inquired, his face right in front of the paler youth. Kanmuri's eyes shot open as he jumped. "Please don't surprise me!" he exclaimed, one hand clutching his half-exposed chest.

"Gomen, gomen (I'm sorry)," Azuma scratched his head and retreated towards the futon. "Shigeru," the boy called him after he sat on the mattress and patted the spot in front of him, "Are you by any chance a half?"

"Shiteru no (you know)?" Kanmuri replied as he sat on his calves opposite to his customer.

"I'm just guessing," Azuma shook his head. "Datte mezurashi no momoiro kami to murasaki me ga aru kara (You have a unique colouring), Shigeru."

"My mother is a British," Kanmuri didn't know why he was divulging this information. Not even Tsukino was privy to this. "I remember that she used to have auburn hair…it was so red it looked like a gash against her fair complexion." He smiled fondly at that one memory of the woman he treasured.

"But Shigeru's hair is pink," Azuma pointed out.

"I have this…not exactly a disease…an anomaly will be more like it. It's called albinism," Kanmuri explained after admonishing Azuma to be patient. "It causes me to have fewer pigments. As a result, my skin is paler than ordinary Japanese people, and my hair is a washed out red instead of the full fledged one. Most albinos also have red or violet eyes." (A/N: This is the theory I developed of Kanmuri's pink hair…because it just doesn't make sense for one to own pink hair!)

"Naru hodo (I get it)!" Azuma nodded in comprehension, "Shigeru no oka-san wa ima doko ja (Where is your mother now)?"

Kanmuri was reminded of the salty tang of the air near the sea, of his own tears, of flashes of a huge ship which stole the redhead away, of the cries of the seagulls. "Why…" he lowered his head, "why do you keep on asking this type of questions? And why do you keep on calling my name?"

"I like the name. It suits you perfectly: a gentle, but fierce and strong person. Besides…" Azuma replied with a smile, "Omae no koto shiritai ja (I want to know more about you), Shigeru!"

Kanmuri gasped.

'_You don't know me!'_

"My mother also died when I was really young," mistaking Kanmuri's silence for grief, Azuma tried to console him by sharing his childhood tales to the other boy, "But Otou-chan is really good to me! I also have Jii-chan, and Inaho-Nee-chan…though my sister is so scary she might have been the reason of my fear of women." He laughed at himself.

'_Don't be kind to me'_

"Azuma-san, how shall I serve you today?" Kanmuri interpolated abruptly so Azuma would stop telling stupid jokes to cheer him up. In every one of his visits, Azuma had always treated him as though Kanmuri was…his friend. And he couldn't take it.

"Nando mo ita ja (I've told you this repeatedly)! Call me Kazuma, Shigeru!" Azuma grinned.

"Is that a command?" If Kanmuri took this as a BDSM game, he could endure this.

"A command?" Azuma frowned in confusion. "What command? Anyway, today, you can do anything you want, Shigeru."

"W-what?" Kanmuri stopped dead.

"You have always made me feel good each and every time we did it," Azuma crossed his arms behind his head, "So today, I want to make you feel good. I'm not very experienced, so please guide me!" his caramel eyes were sincere.

'_Stop treating me as an equal'_

Kanmuri's mouth opened and closed without forming a word for a while before he nodded, "Very well." He gave the obi a tug and took off his kimono, folding it neatly and placed the dragonfly pin carefully on the top of the pile. He tossed the bottle of oil to Azuma as he positioned himself on his hands and knees. "Coat yourself with oil."

Azuma nearly had a nosebleed. How could he not? His lover was laid out in front of him, like a feast. He took off his clothes eagerly and abided immediately, but as he was kneeling behind the pink-haired youth, he calmed himself down. "Can you teach me how to prepare you?"

"There is no need," there was an edge to Kanmuri's voice, "Just plunge it in."

Azuma didn't like the sound of this. True, he had never been penetrated before, but he imagined it would be painful. Kanmuri's spine was tense, the brunet could see it. But he had promised the other boy, so he massaged the small of his lover's back, and placed a kiss on his left shoulder. "As you wish," he breathed to the paler youth's ears.

'_Stop giving me choices'_

Azuma entered the other male slowly, gently, pausing after every inch to make sure that Kanmuri was all right, his warm dark hands resting below his heart and holding his length gently, his arms enveloping him, his breaths teasing his ears. Fluttery kisses ghosted over the back of his neck, his tongue worshipping his skin, treating him like a beloved, precious jewel.

Kanmuri couldn't take it.

"Harder," he ordered, his voice breaking, "faster, rougher!"

"Shigeru-"

A tear leaked out of an amethyst eye and fell to the coarse cotton below. "OBEY ME!" he cried hoarsely.

Kanmuri could feel Azuma nodding against his back, and increased his pace. But no matter how fast, how hard, how rough, it wasn't enough. He could feel blood trickling down the back of his thigh, but the nerves at the ends of his toes still tingled, butterflies still fluttered in his stomach, heat still pooled at his groin. His hands gave away when Azuma plundered his prostrate, stars blinking behind his eyelids. "A-azuma!" he whimpered as he came, his semen splattered against his abdomen and the sheets below.

As per se, Azuma came after him, spilling his essence inside of him. However, this time he didn't collapse on top of him, the caramel-eyed boy sat on his calves and examined his wound. "Daijoubu (are you okay)?" his voice was laden with worries as he touched the small of his spine carefully. "Itai (does it hurt)? Itai ni kimateru jarou (it must hurt, right)," Azuma used his own shirt to wipe the coppery crimson liquid, Kanmuri could tell from the texture of the fabric against his skin. "Gomenasai (I'm sorry)," Azuma pleaded guiltily, and enveloped him in his arm, rolling around so that Kanmuri didn't have to bear both their weights, one his hand caressing his back lovingly.

'_I hate that I always enjoy having sex with you, even though I have believed that I was forced into having sex with men.'_

It was the final straw. Tears started falling out of Kanmuri's eyes, the force of his sobs causing his form to tremble, hard. Azuma was shocked. "Ssshhh" he turned Kanmuri around and wiped the tears off his face, "Ore ga waru kata (It's my bad). Gomenasai (I'm sorry)! Please don't cry!" he begged, and pulled his arms around him tighter, burying Kanmuri's face on Azuma's tanned chest. "I'm sorry! I won't hurt you ever again."

The cuddle was warm, and comfortable, and Azuma had always been a good lover, but Kanmuri didn't want them all. Kanmuri wanted other customers, who shoved their penises in his anus, yanked his hair and slapped his face. Kanmuri didn't want to enjoy having sex with a man at all, even though that man was Azuma, because that would really make him abnormal, the worst of all incongruities. With that thought fuelling his mind, he clawed his way out of Azuma's arms.

"Get out!" the pink-haired prostitute yelled hysterically as he snatched his kimono from the corner and put it on hurriedly, "get out now!"

"Shigeru," Azuma stood up and approached him gingerly. "Shigeru, I'm sorry I went too far. Please calm down," he stated when he was an arm-length away from the other youth, well within Kanmuri's touching range.

'_I'm falling in love with you…but I don't want to.'_

"Don't-!" Kanmuri hated that he couldn't stop the tears from falling, "Don't ever come see me again, you hear me!" he screamed, slammed the door open and dashed down the corridor.

"Shigeru!" Azuma wanted to run after him, but he was stark naked, and by the time he finished wrestling with his hakama, Azuma couldn't see the boy anymore. His brows furrowing, he dropped to his knees. "Yapa ore…yari sugi ja ne (I really went overboard)," he flopped onto his back.

As he did so, he felt a sharp object digging to his right shoulder blade. "Itai (Ouch)!" he exclaimed, and sat up straight, "What the hell," he rubbed the sore on his skin and turned around.

On the tatami was Kanmuri's dragonfly pin, one of the wings slightly bent. "Ack!" Azuma squeaked, and placed the small accessory on his palm. "Geez, you've done it again, stupid Kazuma," he scolded himself and sighed, "Well, then, I'll just fix it and give it to him tomorrow."

With that resolve, the tanned rice farmer left the brothel, intent on mending the dispute that happened just now as well.

* * *

The thump of the sliding door closing and sobbing sounds woke Harumi from his restless sleep. The ailed girl dragged herself out of her bed and stood up. "Shigeru-kun?" Harumi walked towards the figure slumped at the corner next to the paper door with shaky legs, "Is that you?"

Kanmuri was hiding his face behind his knees, his form shaking as he wept. Harumi assessed her friend with her eyes. His kimono was put on haphazardly, though he appeared to be unharmed. 'Well, an emotional wound leaves a mark deeper than that on the skin,' she thought as she kneeled in front of the amethyst-eyed boy. "Shigeru-kun, what's wrong?"

Kanmuri looked up gingerly and paused before registering her presence, as though he forgot who she was. Then a split second afterwards, his hands flew to his head, raking his hair and tangling them to a mess of knots. "Inai (it's not there)," he mumbled, his voice rising with panic. "Inai! The pin! The pin you gave me is not there!"

"The dragonfly pin?" Harumi tried to soothe him by enveloping him in her frail arms, "Forget about it. I have other pins."

"B-but!" his teary eyes turned to look at her. The expression on his face was forlorn; Kanmuri was well and truly lost, and it was her fault. Her heart broke.

"Gomenasai!" Harumi whispered as she hugged him tightly, "I'm so sorry."

"What are you saying, Harumi?" Kanmuri returned the hug and tried to stop the tears, but he was failing badly, "It's not your fault. It's not your fault at all."

"It is!" Harumi touched his face and wiped away the salty tracks, "it's okay to cry. I'll make you forget. I'll heal you," she said vehemently, and for once, Kanmuri wanted to believe her.

The two spent the night in each other's embrace, believing that they could heal the wounds that were carved to their hearts.

TBC

A/N: Harumi makes reappearance. Her role will be explained in chapter 4. And yes, I know the plot is a bit fast, but I don't feel like writing a lot of sex scenes (Kanmuri is a prostitute. What else do you think they do when they meet?). This chapter is set one season after the first chapter. The next chapter should be longer. My principle is the fewer the chapters, the higher the possibility of my finishing the story.

Oh, before I forget, yes, the black dragon is opium.


	3. Kokuhaku

A/N: Less sex, more drama! Er...or do you prefer otherwise?

**Chapter 3: ****Kokuhaku (The Confession)**

"Irasai mase (Welcome)!" Tsukino bowed as yet another customer entered Maboroshi-ya, "Who do you wish to order?" no matter how worn-out she was, a commercial smile was always plastered on her face.

"Oh, Tsukino-san ja (It's Tsukino-san)!" Azuma grinned and waved at the green-eyed girl, "Konbanwa (good evening), Tsukino-san!"

"Azuma-kun," Tsukino greeted him back, "Didn't you come to see Murasaki yesterday? What brings you here again tonight?"

"Well…" the amber-eyed teenager looked sideways, "I seemed to have done something that hurt him yesterday, so I have to make it to him up as soon as possible," he scratched his shoulder-length brown hair.

'Make it up? To a prostitute?' Tsukino asked inwardly. Now that she thought about it, she discerned that Kanmuri had been a bit off the whole day. But she knew it wasn't the first time someone hurt him; as a person who was in the business of selling one's own body, Kanmuri had endured much worse physical pain than Tsukino'd imagined Azuma could inflict. Yet, this was the first time Kanmuri was affected. She wondered why. Her facial expression, however, was unfaltering. "I understand. Demo (but), Azuma-kun," she gave him her best apologetic look, "Murasaki is currently serving another customer."

"Then, I'll wait!" He said determinedly before Tsukino could make a suggestion for him to leave. "I can wait outside, so you can host other customers. Don't worry, I won't bother you."

With that kind of resolution, how could Tsukino let the boy stood out there and freeze in the cold autumn night? The brunette snagged the boy by the wrist as he turned to exit the brothel. "You don't have to go that far," she smiled, "I can fit you to a holding room."

Call Tsukino selfish, but she ended up accompanying Azuma almost the whole time, even when she was supposed to go around assigning girls to customers and finish administrative matters. Tsukino liked Azuma, at least more so than other uncouth, perverse customers. Azuma treated her, and other prostitutes, with respect and benevolence. Azuma never harboured any bad intention towards anyone. More than ever, as a friend, Tsukino wished Kanmuri, who had gone through much hardship, could find happiness with this wonderful person, but as a prostitute herself, she knew that it was an impossible wish. Falling in love with a person who couldn't buy him off from Yukino would only hurt Kanmuri. Besides, even if Azuma have enough money to buy Kanmuri off Yukino, there was something else that chained the purple-eyed youth here, caging him in Maboroshi-ya…

After waiting for three hours, Tsukino pretended to check on Kanmuri, before showing her face to Azuma again. "I'm really, really sorry," Tsukino wasn't lying, "But the customer have decided to hire Murasaki for the whole night…may be you'll have more luck tomorrow?"

"It can't be!" Azuma rose up from the floor. The crease between his brows, three hours' worth of anxiety, seemed to have been sewn there. "I must meet him tonight!"

"What is so important that you have to see him face to face?" Tsukino tried to reason. As much as she wanted to them meet, the ones hiring Kanmuri that night were important government officials. Corrupt ones, but government officials nonetheless. Yukino would be pissed if something other than the best-case scenario were to happen. In the end, it was Kanmuri who had to suffer the consequences too.

"I have something to give to him!" Azuma retorted, his voice rising. Azuma never raised his voice when talking to Tsukino.

"You can give it to me. I'll pass it to him," she offered him a hand. When he hesitated, she added, "You can trust me."

"I know I can trust you," the rice farmer's reply surprised Tsukino. "It's just…" his frown deepened, "I'm worried."

Tsukino listened quietly, hoping. For what? She didn't know. For miracles?

"Lately, he seemed…different. Like he'd been trying to distance himself from me. Yesterday, I let him do anything he wishes-"

'You let him do anything he wishes?' question marks popped up in Tsukino's mind, 'who ever let give a prostitute freedom?'

"And then something happened and I hurt him. He told me not to see him again, but," Azuma continued, his caramel eyes filled with nothing but concern for the pink-haired boy. And may be something else. Something more complicated. "Ya pa shimpai ja (I am still worried)."

So Tsukino's suspicion was correct; Kanmuri had fallen in love with someone he shouldn't, and was beleaguered by it. "But you can still fix it tomorrow night. It doesn't have to be today."

"Dame ja (No)! Ima jyanakiya (If not now)-" the tanned teenager bit his lips before bowing his head, his eyes shadowed by a curtain of brown hair. "Kino no yoru, naiteita ja (He was crying yesterday night)," he said quietly, "He looked like he suffered so much."

Tsukino took a few steps towards the brunet. "Azuma-kun."

His head shot up again. "I just can't let Shigeru suffer for another day! I'll do anything in my power to make Shigeru happy! Dakara (that's why)-" he turned to the green-eyed girl, his voice filled with steel resolve, "Onegai (please), Tsukino-san!"

"S-shigeru?" Tsukino repeated, stunned, both by the revelation and Azuma's motivation, "Anata wa Murasaki no hontou no namae shiteru no (You know Murasaki's real name)?"

"Eh? Yes…" Azuma blinked, confused at the question which seemed like it popped out of the blue, "Tonikaku (anyways), Tsukino-san, please let me see Shigeru!"

Tsukino weighed her options. There were a lot to lose, but on the other hand, the albino wouldn't have entrusted his real name to Azuma so easily if he didn't, deep in his heart, hope Azuma could save him, if he didn't acknowledge Azuma was different, someone that could mean more to him.

She, like Azuma, just wanted Kanmuri's stream of torrent-like torments to end.

"The room is at the end of the west wing on the second storey," knowing that either way, she would regret her decision, Tsukino chose the easier path and handed the honey-eyed, single-minded boy the spare key, "Please save Kanmuri-kun."

"Arigatou, Tsukino!" The smile he gave her was a rough diamond that broke her heart, "I owe you!" he screamed as he dashed out of the holding room.

Tsukino's legs buckled, and the brunette slumped to the wall. "I'm sorry, Kanmuri-kun," she whispered deliriously, "Anata no shiawase ga inori shite dake dakiru kara (Because I can only pray for your happiness)."

* * *

"2046, 2046…" Azuma looked around frantically as he ran down the corridors, bumping against some prostitutes here and there. He paused long enough to offer his apology before rushing off again; most of them were surprised at his politeness.

He had nearly covered every inch of the second storey when he collided into someone again, knocking the girl to her bottom this time. "Gomen!" he offered his hand to the prostitute and helped her to her feet.

"You-" The girl turned out to be Midori, who often accompanied him while he was waiting for the highly-demanded Murasaki. The girl took his hand and dusted her kimono. "You're okay, right?" Azuma gave her one last check, "Then, Ja-"

"Matte (wait)!" Midori caught a glimpse of the key in Azuma's hand, "Azuma-san wa Murasaki ga sagashiteru desyou (Azuma-san is searching for Murasaki, right)? I can lead you the way."

Azuma's face lit up brightly. "Hontou (really)? Arigatou!"

"Shizuka ni (be quiet)!" Midori shushed the boy before taking cat like-steps, avoiding planks that creaked. "Follow me."

They squeezed through meandering ways, and even a hidden passage behind a traditional painting, before finally reaching the door to the room with '2046' sign pasted above it.

"Well then," Azuma inserted the key and prepared to open the piece of wood and paper, but Midori's hands pulled him down. "What are you doing?" Azuma hissed.

"You can just enter like that! Peek first!" Midoru sucked a finger in her mouth before poking a hole in the paper.

"I feel like a Peeping Tom," Azuma complained, but Midoru hushed him again. "Just see first!'

The room was way more extensive and lavish that the ones Azuma frequented, the air permeated by the peculiar scent he hated. At the centre of the space contained within the four walls, Kanmuri was naked on his hands and knees. A meaty balding man with a pot belly was roughly shoving his penis to the pink-haired boy's mouth and holding on to Kanmuri's scalp while another man, taller and thinner, was doing the albino from behind. Kanmuri choked when the fatty thrust his filthy flesh to the boy's throat and came; the prostitute was coughing badly, white, sticky fluid dripping out of the sides of his mouth to his chin.

A vein pulsed on the fatso's temple. "I told you to swallow, idiot!" He backhanded Kanmuri across the face, sending him sprawling to the other's man's lap. The thin one put one arm around Kanmuri and used the other one to still the boy's hips as he pounded into it mercilessly. Azuma could see that the other boy's body was tense, his face scrunching in pain, and his blood boiled. He had to do something. He-

"Azuma-san," Midori stilled him, "Please don't barge in," she mouthed.

The fatso took a drag from his pipe, which Azuma suspected was filled with the black dragon. Suddenly, there was an evil glint in his eyes. "Ne," he turned the pipe such that the mouthpiece was just inches from Kanmuri's battered lips, "Do you think it'll be fun if we feed him opium?" he sneered.

"Ooh, definitely!" his companion replied, blood trickling from his nose, "the pretty boy, docile and begging for us…I'm going to come!"

Kanmuri stopped dead, his eyes wide with fear. "N-no!" he whimpered, "No, p-please don't!" he began to struggle, his head trashing about. 'I can't afford to, I can't. Harumi-!'

"Be still!" The fatty kicked the boy in the gut, and while Kanmuri bent over in shock, the thin one gripped his chin and kept it in place. Kanmuri bit the man's finger, and elbowed his ribs. The thin one shrieked but did not release his hold on the boy. The fatso, though, fumed with anger and slapped Kanmuri. "You ungrateful bitch!" he barked, still forcing the pipe to Kanmuri's closed lips, "I'm offering you a way out! Don't you want it? A break from all these sufferings? Don't you?" he taunted.

Kanmuri stopped resisting, his eyes wide open as a goldfish's. Crystalline tears were leaking out of those beautiful amethyst orbs now, his lips parting slightly. 'I'm sorry…Harumi,' he pleaded, his eyelids drooping…

THUMP!

Before anyone even knew it, Azuma had broken through the door. He stood between the pig and his lover, and hit the fatso's hand. The pipe of opium flew across the room before hitting the wall and cluttered to the floor. "GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF HIM!" Azuma barked; he was so angry his whole body was shaking in fury.

Shocked by the intrusion, the fatty took a while before raising his hand to give him a blow, but Azuma dodged, and charged at the fatso head on to his chest. The fatso might have bigger limbs, but Azuma was a farmer; he was used to hours of physical work in the fields, so he could slam the official with no difficulties. Bashing the skinnier man was even easier.

The ruckus he created alerted the others. Paper doors slid open one by one along the corridor, customers in various states of nudity poking their heads out. "What's happening?" Kanmuri recognized Yukino's high-pitched shrill, and cringed and cowered.

Detecting the flinch, Azuma looked around, found what he was looking for, snatched what seemed to be a woman's kimono, wrapped his lover in it before hoisting the slender albino over his shoulder. Kanmuri was lighter than he expected. "Let's break into a run," he whispered.

"Wha-? Ouch!" Despite the warning, Kanmuri's stomach lurched when Azuma dashed down the corridor audaciously, unheeding any obstacles in sight, including the two sword-yielding men stationed at the entrance of Maboroshi-ya. The pink-haired boy had to clutch the farmer's worn down shirt and buried his face to his saviour's back so his head wouldn't swing so much.

If there was anything Azuma could brag about, it was his endurance in running long-distance (Remember the anime, guys?). Azuma's legs were moving so fast he felt as though he was soaring over the air. His lungs burned from lack of oxygen, his muscles ached, the cool wind gave him whiplashes on his face and brought tears to his eyes, but the tanned boy didn't feel all of them. Nor did he notice the people drilling holes on his back with their stares.

Azuma didn't stop until he reached his rice fields, and the hut he spent numerous lunches in. After making sure that no one was following him, he put Kanmuri down onto the straw carpet. "Daijoubu (are you all right)?" he panted as he bent down to catch his breath, inhaling large gulps of air. The fragrance of ripening rice, his rice, welcomed his nose.

The sting erupting from his left cheek was entirely unexpected. The smacking sound reverberated through the quietness of the countryside, the collision so powerful the farmer's head was turned to the right. Azuma cradled his face, which was rapidly swelling, looked up, agape, saw Kanmuri's raised palm turning red and put two and two together. "N-nan ja (w-what)?" he asked, confused.

The pink-haired boy was breathing hard, his chest heaving, his face blooming as red as his palm. "Do you…" he growled through gritted teeth, his mused hair bristling, "Do you know what you just did?"

"D-datte!" Azuma reasoned, "The pig was trying to suffocate you with the black dragon, wasn't he? I-I can't just stay there and watch you suffer!"

"Why?" Kanmuri's voice had hit the unattainable decibels, "Who am I to you?" he croaked.

The brunet was rendered speechless. He bowed his head, his eyes glued to the patch of muddy ground in front of him. "Sore wa…(that's…)"

'_I can't get you off my mind'_

Azuma sought for answers desperately. Kanmuri's question echoed in his ear; exactly what is the pink-haired boy to the rice farmer? Initially, Azuma saw him again because he liked Kanmuri; the albino could transcend him to the sky, and Azuma was excited that he could finally have a friend his age. Then, the emotion developed; he started caring about the prostitute more than he did Kawachi or Katsuo. Every time he was going to see the pretty boy, his heart beat faster in anticipation. Each time he left the brothel, he couldn't wait to see him again.

'_I want to touch you'_

Azuma's head snapped up as he was struck by an epiphany. Could it be?

'_I want to see you everyday, breathe in your scent, hold you so tight I'm fused with you.'_

Images of Kanmuri flashed through his mind: his smiles, his wanton whimpers as he arched towards him, his contemplative gazes, his self-deprecating whispers, his form by the moonlight. The floodgates had been broken, engulfing Azuma in surges of emotions: affections, contentment, melancholy, jealousy, protective feelings.

Only one thing was certain.

'_I want you to be mine'_

'I'm sorry, Kawachi,' Azuma reflected before shouting his confession. "Suki ja (I love you)!"

Kanmuri stopped breathing, his eyes widening, revealing more and more red tracks branching off his purple irises. "N-nani (what)?"

"Ore Shigeru ga suki ja (I love Shigeru)!" Azuma repeated with conviction.

"Ba-baka na koto (it's impossible)!" Kanmuri flailed his hands about to make his point, "Both of us are males! Don't you think it's wrong?"

"Kankei nai ja (It doesn't matter)!" Azuma insisted.

"B-but-"

"Ojii-chan told me this tale a thousand times," the rice farmer interposed, "It was about his baby sister, Ume-Oba-chan. Kanojo wa...onna ga aishita ja (She fell in love with another woman). When her father discovered it, he separated them, and married her off with the owner of the neighbouring poultry farm." Azuma paused and took a deep breath. "Jii-chan…wa jibun wo yurushitekunai (never forgive himself) ano otoko wa oba-chan ga tsuterarete, houka no onna kekkon suru koto mitsuketa ato (when he found out that Ume-Oba-chan's husband abandoned her and married another woman), especially since the man also abused her and left her to die!"

"Azuma-" Kanmuri didn't know how to react to the tale. Should he say sorry?

"Dakara," The brunet continued, "Ojii-chan always tells me, whether it's a girl, a guy, someone way older or younger or with a different social status, kankei nai ja (it doesn't matter)! Aishite areba (As long as I love you), daiji ni shite areba (as long as I take care of you preciously), juubun ja (It's enough)!"

Kanmuri felt as though he had been splashed with ice water. The wisdom on difference in social status and age stabbed his heart. It reminded him of the relationship between Harumi, who was his age, and Tsutsumi, who was more than a decade older than them. Everyone had looked at Tsutsumi accusingly, but Kanmuri never judged his blood relative.

"Sou…desu ne," he acquiesced quietly, his head lowered, "Demo, mita desyou (you've seen it, right)? Boku wa konna ni katanai datte (How dirty I am)," The hand that pulled his kimono tighter over his body shook. He could still taste the man's foul cum on his tongue, feel the fluid running down the back of his thighs, ghosts of perverted hands on his skin, the musky smell of sex and sweat, "everyday, I'm used by many different men. I'm tainted. I don't deserve you, Azuma-san!"

"Nani iterun' ja (What are you talking about)?" Azuma grabbed the other boy on his bony shoulders, "Shigeru wa Shigeru ja (Shigeru is Shigeru)! Yasashii, tsuyoi Shigeru (Gentle, strong Shigeru)!"

Somehow, the compliment only infuriated the pink-haired boy. "How can you say that? You don't know me at all!" he cried, "You don't know how weak I am!" his heart bled.

"Iie! Shiteru ja (no, I know)! You're neither weak, nor soiled!" Azuma argued, "Datte (because), Tsukino-san wa Shigeru no koto simpai shite ja (Tsukino-san is worried about you). I believe in Tsukino-san's judgment – she's Kawachi's friend, and Kawachi couldn't have befriended a bad person! I trust you! You should give more credit to yourself!" The brown-haired boy pulled his crush to his chest and enveloped him in a warm embrace.

Kanmuri put his head on the other's boy's shoulder and closed his eyes. He wanted to succumb, he really did. If he was being honest to himself, he admitted he was falling in love with the pure, innocent, determined boy. Kanmuri'd stand on his own two feet for too long, he was lonely, the burden on his shoulders too heavy. But he couldn't. For he didn't belong to himself.

A sharp object was digging to both Azuma's and Kanmuri's torsos. "Itai!" Azuma pulled away sharply, extending the distance between their upper bodies but keeping their legs together. "A-ah, I almost forget," he slipped one hand inside the opening in his kimono, the other arm still looped around Kanmuri, and pulled out a trinket the pink-haired boy had known all too well: Harumi's red dragonfly pin.

"A-ah, the wing is bent again," Azuma groaned to himself, before handing it to Kanmuri like an offering above his palm. "You left it in the room yesterday, and I accidentally laid on it. I tried to fix the wing but it got bent again," he grinned sheepishly, "I'm sorry."

Kanmuri's chest constricted. The expression on Azuma's face was so carefree, so bright, so beautiful. If he were to accept Azuma's feelings, he would imprison the boy in his dark world, tied him to his cage, rooting him to the ground. Azuma was like Summer in a tale his British mother had read him long, long ago: a child of the earth, with a smile thatlit the day. Wherever the he walked, the grass was green where his feet touched, flowers blossomed, life flourished.Staying with him would suck the life force out of him, and Kanmuri didn't want to be the one who murdered his beloved with his hands.

So he let him go.

"Anata ni ageru (I'm giving it to you)," Kanmuri covered Azuma's proffered palm with his hand and pushed it towards him.

"Ii no?" Azuma furrowed his brows, "It's something important to you, isn't it?"

"It is," Kanmuri took a few steps back to the fields and busied himself by tying his obi. The grasses were tickling the patch of skin of his ankle above the line of his socks. "I want you to keep it as a memento of me."

Azuma sensed that something was off. "W-what's wrong?"

Kanmuri took a deep breath before turning to face Azuma again. It took him all of his willpower to stare at him in his large caramel eyes. "I want you," he faltered. He'd said this before, why could he hear his heart shattering as though it was pummeled on the ground this time? "I want you to stop seeing me," he stated solemnly.

"I told you, it doesn't matter! I don't care you're a guy! And you're not dirty!" Azuma attempted to touch on the other boy, but Kanmuri raised his hand, stopping the other's boy warm, familiar fingers midair. "It's not that."

"Then-"

"There're things about me that you don't know about, things that will ruin your life." This time, it's Kanmuri who was looking at Azuma earnestly. "Besides, it's bad if Yukino-sama discover that it was you who wreaked havoc in Maboroshi-ya just now."

"I don't care!" the brunet retorted passionately, "I want to protect you!"

"I want to protect you too," Kanmuri's reply surprised Azuma. "You're not the only one who's allowed to be selfish."

The darker-skinned of the two was wavering. "B-but…"

As Azuma was debating with himself, the prostitute crept towards him quietly, and cupped his face. Their lips met in a tender, chaste kiss, which lasted less than five seconds. Azuma could barely feel the pressure of Kanmuri's lips on his own, but the kiss seared to Azuma's lips like a brand. "Aishitekureta arigatou (Thank you for loving me)," Kanmuri's voice, a notch louder than the wind, filled his ear, "Sayonara (Goodbye)."

When Azuma turned around to prevent Kanmuri from leaving, the fabric of the prostitute's kimono slipped from his hand. A sudden gust of wind blew dust to his eyes, blurring his sight to meshing shadows, but after he erased the tears, the man he loved had gone, disappeared from his world. He was left alone in his field, the stalks of his rice sagging as though they sympathised with him.

TBC

A/N: Sayonara is very significant in Japanese. It's not a see you sometime soon type of 'bye'. It's a 'I'll never see you again' type of good bye. Anyways, review please!


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